Means for locking automobiles against self-propulsion



1943- M. ZIMMERMANN ET AL 2,336,329

MEANS FOR LOCKING AUTOMOBILES AGAINST SELF-PROPULSION Filed March 30, 1942 1NVENTOR5,

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J m 30 0 V9 9 9 4/ 4- r y A rman/15 Patented Dec. 14, 1943 MEANS Foa LOCKING AUTOMOBILES AGAINST SELF-PROPULSION Maximilian E. Zimmermann and William W. Hurtel, Los Angeles, Calif.

Application March 30, 1942, Serial No. 436,858

15 Claims.

This invention relates to a device for locking automobiles against self-propulsion.

Among the objects of the invention are: to improve upon prior devices of a similar class in the following particulars:

To provide an improved arrangement of movable members which are manually adjustable to occupy different horizontal positions so as properly to underlie, in a locked condition, foot pedals or other depressible automobile controls to prevent operation of the latter; to provide improved means to prevent unauthorized persons from tampering with the device in such a manner as 'to defeat its purpose; to provide a device which may be attached without difficulty to, and as readily removed from, and adjusted to efficiently operate upon, all the leading makes of automotive cars; and to improve upon the operation, the durability, simplicity and sturdiness of devices similarly classifiable.

The device whereby we attain the foregoing objects is very easy to operate and is attractive in appearance, the present preferred embodiment thereof being illustrated in the drawing.

The invention includes a new article of manufacture mountable upon self-propelled vehicles, in general, for the purpose of providing a means for locking, against unauthorized self-propulsion, the vehicle to which it is attached.

Other objects, advantages and features of invention will hereinafter appear.

Fig. 1 is a side elevation looking from left to right (from the viewpoint of driver), some conventional parts being shown in broken lines, and parts being broken away to show interior construction.

Fig. 2 is an elevation looking, at all except the upper portion of the structure shown in Fig. 1, from the viewpoint of the driver. In this view: full lines indicate positions of parts of the instrument in the pedal arresting position and broken lines their position for pedal release. Also some conventional parts are shown in broken lines.

Figs. 3 and 4 are cross sections respectively on lines 33 and 4-4 of Fig. 1.

Fig. 5 is a vertical section of the lower part of the instrument itself, the plane of sect-ion extending through the axis both of the handle carrying operating rod and the supporting rod which carries the pedal arresters.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged fragmental side elevation looking at the right side of the clamp as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, the means for drawing the sides of the clamp together being omitted.

Figs. '7 and 8 are respectively plan and. elevational views of the interlocking portion of an improved clamping means for attaching the supporting means to the steering post column, the two interlocking parts of said clamp being in each view shown adjacent to each other in readiness for assembling.

Fig. 9 is a plan view of a fragment of the looking bolt.

Referring in detail to the drawing, the instrument is shown attached to the conventional steering post H! by means of a clamping structure which includes the stationary wing l I, said wing portion having a basal central part l2 continuous with its C-shaped or partly cylindrical portion l3. The stationary wing H has upper and lower ears [4 and a crimped part or arcuate rib l5 along the edge thereof from which said ears extend, said ears each carrying along its outer edge a short, outwardly deflected lip or flange l9. With the stationary wing II that has been described cooperates a movable wing l6, having a central ear or flange IT and a crimped or arcu-' ate rib I8 at its outer edge from which the central ear or flange I! extends; and this central flange I! also carries at its outer edge, a narrow, angular strip portion 26 extending the full width of the clamping structure. When the two wings are united the single flange ll of the movable wing IB occupies the space between the ears M of stationary wing ll, while said outer angular strip 29 of wing I6 passes under and into arcuated rib portion l 5 of wing I I. In uniting the two wings when thus positioned the arcuated rib portion l8 of wing l 5 closes down on the angular strips IQ of stationary wing ll; thus forming an interlocked, practical, secure and sightly union of the clamping wings, or jaws, H and [6, without hinge, pin, bolt, or rivet.

The movable wing l6 has at its inner end portion a central recess 2! which receives a central projection 22 from the opposite clamping wing ll, projections 23 and 23a resulting in movable wing Iii-both above and below said recess. These interlocking projections are preferably beveled, as shown. A central clamping bolt 24 extends through an aperture provided for it in said projection 22, the head of the bolt abutting against the outer side of the opposite portion of the clamp. Said bolt has a nut 25 screwing onto it, said nut serving to clamp the supporting tube 26 against movement in relation to the clamp, and carrying the instrument thereby. Also through each of the projections 23 and 23a of wing J6 extends a clamping bolt 21, the upper bolt 21 being shown in Figure 4. Nuts 29 ar screwed onto these bolts to tighten clamp onto the steering post [9. All these nuts have heads 3|. The

aperture of each of these nuts extends through it at substantially a right angle to its screwthreaded portion. The clamping action of the central bolt 24 is entirely separate from that of the upper and lower bolts 21.

When the three apertured nuts 3i have been screwed into place upon the three bolts to which they are attached in the manner which has been described, with the assembled instrument in position with supporting and guiding tubular portion 26 of the instrument clamped tothe steering I post ID, the lower section'35 of the operating. stem or rod, carried by the basal operating'plate35 will be directed upwardly toward and into position for passing through the aligned apertures "threaded socket 32 into which is detachably screwed the upper handle portion 35a of. said --operating stem, after said handle portion has been passed downwardly through the aligned The upper section 35a head 38 for the operator to grasp. *As a measure Y of protection against tampering with the instrument this head 38 fits closely in behind the locking structure when the instrument is in a pedal reIeased position. 335 and-35a connect to the operating plate 36 through the aligned apertured clamping bolt heads 31 and make these bolts and nuts secure againstfany tampering by unauthorized persons, fmaking it: practically impossibleto defeat the The operating stem sections purpose of the instrument.

The pedal arresting arms 39 and 40, together with the-basal operating plate 36, which carries said arms, are connectedwith and extend out- .walfdly from an upwardly extending supporting bar 42,"andsaid pedal arrestingarms and the operating stem sections 35 and 35a move vertically as a single unit, this movement being guided by the tube 26 within which said bar 42 slides. The pedal arresting arm 39 is not only apertured,

but for added strength and smoothness and ease of operation, it is furnished with a circular up- ,standing part 44, which may be formed integrally with it or, as shown in Fig. 5, may consistof a short sleeve having its lower end screwed into .in relation to the supporting bar 42. The arresting arm39 has an upwardly oifset attaching part 431 so that the two arresting arms may remain always on a'comparatively level plane in relation to each other. as they, together with the movable structureare operated. 7 The supporting bar 42 extends through the sustaining collar 4|, which is secured .to .it by set screw 46, or by other means, and bar 42 continues downwardly through the combination of operating plate 36, circular part44 and the inner portions of thepedal arrester arms, and projects ltherebelow. where it is furnished with screw .threads. The lower pedal arrester arm 40 is furnished with a screwthreaded aperture into which the'threaded part of bar 42 is screwed. The lower end of saidbar .42 is then peened, thereby securing it fixedly to the arresting arm 40 and securely supporting in place the movable members which it carries. I II I By the structure which has been described, the arresting arm 40 is secured fixedly to supporting bar 42 to swing freely and easily therewith, and therewith is movable up and down in relation to the supporting tubular portion 26 of the instrument, and may also swing freely and easily in relation to the operating parts 35, 35a, and 36 and the arresting arm 39. And the pedal arresting arm 39 is freely and easily swingable in relalO tion to said bar 42 and arresting arm 40 and adjacent parts, the sleeve 44 swinging freely with said arm.

The guide'tube 26 carries at its upper end the modified conventional locking structure 48 serving releasably to support the bar 42 at the desired I elevation. In order to vary the points at which the'bar 42 is locked against depression, said bar is provided with an upper, downwardly facing locking shoulder 5| and with one or more like 2oshoulders 52 in a downwardly paced relation to said shoulder 5|. With these shoulders cooperates the special spring pressed bolt 54 of the I aforesaid conventional lock 48, it being necessary to use a key 56 to release the bar and allow it to descend by gravity from any of its locked posi- -tions. The projecting part of this locking bolt 54 is co-ncavely shaped in order that it may work with precision and security in receiving and retaining the round bar with its circular locking shoulders. Superjacent to each of its locking shoulders the bar 42 will be suitably beveled as indicated at 51 above its upper shoulder 5|, to

cause the bolt 54 to glide over and then pass under the locking shoulder. Elevating the bar 42 to a locked. condition is manually accomplished by lifting upon the operating handle 38 which,

as already explained, is rigidly connected with the lifting plate 36, which is, in turn held in a constant operating relation to bar 42 by the sustaining collar 4|. I I I The instrument may be clamped to the steering post ID at any chosen point, but it must be correctly positioned. ,When the bar 42 is in an elevated. locked condition the .pedal arresting ifiarms underlie the control pedals 60 and 6| of the vehicle thus preventing the operation of these pedals and the use of the car by any unauthorized persons. These pedal arresting arms 39 and 49 are respectively. deeply bifurcated at 39.1: and 40m, and are curved at the proper degree, as shown, thereby providing protective guide and supporting fingers or furcations 62 to receive the pedal stems 63 and properly underlie and sup- .port either or both of the pedals in a locked condition at whatever distance they may be one from the other or that both or either may be from the steering post of the vehicle, or from the supporting structure of the locking instrument; or at whatever position either pedal may be in relation to the other pedal, or at whatever position either or both-may be located in relation to the steering post or to the locking structure of the instrument. These pedal arresting arms 39 and 4|], as they are moved upwardly into the position wherein they will be locked, both or either of them at the same time may freely swing horizontally in any direction. This swingable mounting combined with the curvatures of the pedal arresting arms qualifies them to cooperate with the variously inclined differently shaped stems of the pedals of different makes of automobiles some of which have curved pedal stems. To whatever make of car the device is applied, the bifurcated portions of the pedal arresting arms slidably follow up along the stems of the pedals till said arms reach their pedal obstructing positions.

In other words, as saidarms are manually lifted their curved fingers or furcations 62,

through automatic swingable' adjustment, follow .said bar in the guide, allows both arms to swing freely. Hence both arms swing freely in relation to other parts of the device, and the bifurcated arms and their curved fingers as they are raised automatically follow up the pedal stems till said arms reach and properly underlie the pedals for obstructing any downward movement of the latter.

The arrester arm contact with the pedals may be at the inner portion of the guiding and supporting fingers, their outer portion, or at any point along their length. The guiding fingers follow the pedal stems as the bar 32 is being lifted into the locked condition, and at the same time the pedal arresting fingers $2 of the arresting arms 39 and 40 automatically take the correct locking position properly underlying the foot-engaging portion of the pedals. All pedals can be locked where positioned in relation to the various related factors working together in performing and maintaining the locking operations. Therefore our invention operates satisfactorily upon all designs and makes of automotive vehicles.

In coming into the position for locking, the supporting bar 42 will turn as the arresting arm til swings but, as the locking shoulders 51 and 52 are circumferential in relation to it, turning of the bar does not aiiect the operation of the locking bolt 55. Said bolt can only be released by a key. and the nuts of the clamp are protected against being unscrewed by the 'interengaging relation tothem of the rod 35, passing said rod through apertures in said nuts being a preferred way of protecting them.

The separable, interlocking clamp leaves detailed in Figs. 6 to 8, is theinvention of the second named only of the two inventors named in this application, and, is therefore not specif1- cally claimed in detail in the present application.

As the operator, by means of the handle 38, raises the pedal obstructing assembly, each of the bifurcated, relatively swingable. arms follows up the pedal stem which it straddles, the curvatures of the fingers 82 of said arms being of the proper degree to adapt them automatically to follow up variously shaped and positioned pedal stems until they properly underlie the pedals. This is one of the reasons why the device operates efficiently on many different makes of automobiles. v

In Fig. the pedal obstructing assembly is shown in a fragmentary manner in its uppermost position, with the collar 4! in contact with the lower end of the tubular guide 25, but in case the bar 4:? is locked by any but the lowest of its locking shoulders, said collar will not be drawn up far enough to contact with said guide.

It should be understood that the present disclosure is for the purpose of illustration only and that this invention includes all modifications and equivalents which fall within the scope of the subject matter claimed.

We claim:

1. In a device attachable to the steering wheel column of an automobile for controlling the operation of the vehicle, a manually slidable bar, means carried by said bar and movable therewith to and from a position for obstructing the operation of a pedal of the vehicle, a guide member for said bar, a clamp whereby said guide member is secured to said steering wheel column, said clamp including a plurality of clamping bolts provided with nuts furnished with screwthreaded bores and each with an aperture extending through it at substantially a right angle to its bore, a manually operable rod extending slidably through said apertures, means uniting said rod with the aforesaid bar, pedal obstructing means carried by said bar and movable therewith to and from a position for preventing the operation of the aforesaid pedal, and means for locking said bar in a position wherein it maintains said pedal obstructing means in the pedal obstructing position.

2. In a device attachable to the steering wheel column of an automobile for controlling the operation of the vehicle, a manually slidable bar, means carried by said bar and movable therewith to and from a position for obstructing the operation of a pedal of the vehicle, a guide member for said bar, a clamp whereby said guide member is secured to said steering wheel column, said clamp including screw-threaded members whereby it is tightened, said members each having an aperture extending through it, a rod extending through a plurality of said apertures to prevent unauthorized loosening of the clamp when said pedal obstructing means is in the pedal obstructing position, a key controlled catch means whereby said pedal obstructing means is releasably maintained in the pedal obstructing position, and means turnably connecting said rod with said bar to provide for manually lifting the latter, said connecting means including a sustaining collar fixed to said bar.

3. In combination, a guide member mountable in an upstanding position upon an automobile adjacent to the control pedals thereof, a bar mounted upon said guide member and slidable therealong, a pair of pedal obstructing arms carried by the lower portion of said bar, said arms being connectible in a slidable manner with automobile pedal stems and being swingable in a plane extending at a right angle to the axis of said bar, thereby adapting them to follow the stems of the pedals as said bar is lifted, means to manually lift said bar, and key controlled means to releasably lock said bar in an elevated position with the arms carried thereby in an underlying obstructing relation to said pedals.

4. The subject matter of claim 3 and, said arms each having a bifurcated extremity to straddle the stems of the aforesaid pedals.

5,. In a device attachable to the steering wheel column of an automobile for controlling the operation of the vehicle, a slidable bar, a guide memberfor said bar, a clamp whereby said guide member is secured to said steering wheel column,

said clamp including a plurality of clamping bolts provided with nuts to tighten the clamp, a manually operable rod, means uniting said rod with the aforesaid bar, pedal obstructing means carried by said bar and movable therewith to and from a position for obstructing the operation of the aforesaid pedal of the vehicle, and means for locking said bar in a position wherein it maintains said pedal obstructing means in the pedal eng aging slidable relation to said nuts thereby preventing the unauthorized loosening of the Y latter.

6. In Combination, a guide member mountable in an upstanding position upon an automobile adjacent to the control pedals thereof, a. bar turnably mounted upon said guide member and slidable therealong, two pedalobstructing arms carried by said bar, said arms being shaped to follow up the stems of automobile pedals, and for locking said bar in'a position wherein it maintains said pedal obstructing arms in a pedal obstructing position, said bar having a locking shoulder extending around it a sufiicient distance to permit a material turning movement of the bar without disengaging said shoulder from said locking means, said arms both extending outwardly from said turnable bar, one of them being fixed thereto and the other being swingable thereon. r s 7 7. In combination, a guide member mountable in an upstanding position upon an automobile adjacent to the control pedals thereof, abar turnably mounted upon said guide member and slidable therealong, two pedal obstructing arms carried by said bar, said arms being shaped to follow up the stems of automobile pedals, and for locking said bar in 'a position wherein it maintains said pedal obstructing arms in a pedal obstructing position, said bar having a locking shoulder extending completely around it to mainangle to the axis of the bar, one of said arms being 7 in a fixed relation to said bar and the other being swingably connected thereto, said arms having forked end portions to straddle and slidably follow the stems of the aforesaid pedals, and means to releasably maintain said bar in an elevated position in relation to said guide member in which position said arms obstruct the operation of said pedals.

9. In combination, a tubular guide member, a cylindrical bar slidably and turnably fitted within said member, a locking means carried by the,

upper portion'of said member, said bar having a shouldered upper portion to cooperate with said locking means to releasably maintain the bar in an elevated position, clamping means to secure said member to the steering wheel column of an automobile thereby maintaining said member in an upstanding position, a portion of said slidable 'bar to underlie the pedals of an automobile and to be moved by said operating arm to and from the pedal obstructing position. 7

10. In combination, an elongated guide member, a bar slidable along said member, a locking means carried by the upper portion of said member, a bar having a shouldered upper portion to cooperate with said locking means to releasably maintain the bar in an elevated position, clamping means to secure said member to the steering wheel column of an automobile in an upstanding position, said clamping means including bolts having tightening nuts furnished with screwthreaded bores and with apertures extending through them at right angles to said bores, an operating stem in a parallel spaced relation to said'bar, a lifting member whereby the lower end portions of said bar and stem are connected to each other, and pedal obstructing means carried by the lower end portion of said bar to underlie 'the pedals of an automobile and to be moved by said operating stem to and from the pedal obstructing position, said operating stem extending at substantially a right angle to said aperture.

13. In combination, a guide member mountable in an upstanding position upon an automobile adjacent to a pair of control pedals thereof, a bar mounted upon said guide member and slidable therealong, two pedal obstructing arms carried by said bar and extending outwardly therefromin a plane extending at substantially a rightangle to the axis of the bar, said arms being swingable in said plane in relation to each other, said arms having end portions provided with separate parallel curved furcations to receive between them and follow the stems of the aforesaid pedals, and means to releasably maintain said bar in an elevated position in relation to said guide member in which position said arms obstruct the 'op'erationof said pedals.

14. The subject matter of claim is and, said bar being turnable and one of said pedal ob- V structing arms being fixed to it.

15. In combination, a guide member mountable in an upstanding position-upon an automobile adjacent to a control pedal thereof, a bar turnably mounted upon said guide. member and slidable therealong, a pedal obstructing arm carried by said bar and extending outwardly therefrom in a plane extending at substantially a right angle to the axis of said bar, said arm being curved and. being bifurcated to straddle and slidably follow the stem of the pedal adjacent to V which the device is mounted, and means to releasbar at all times extending below said clamping means, an operating arm in a parallel spaced relation to said bar, a lifting member whereby the lower end portions of said bar and arm are connected to each other, and pedal obstructing means carried by the lower end portion of said ably maintain said bar in an elevated position in relation to said guide member, in which position said arm obstructs'the operation of said pedal.

MAXIMILIAN E. ZIMMERMANN. WILLIAM W. HURTEL. 

